What exactly is CRISPR? It's been featured in the news often in recent months, but the ins-and-outs of the technology seem to have been a bit misunderstood by the mass of details. There are a few misunderstandings concerning what the technology actually is and we're here to clear up the facts!
CRISPR 'EDITS', IT DOESN'T 'MODIFY
There's a difference! Contrary to GM, CRISPR edits and removes specific parts of the pre-existing DNA.1 It alters the DNA already in the DNA! GM actually introduces DNA from one organism into another, thus altering the DNA.2 Furthermore, this foreign DNA is able to be derived from any kind of organism , including insects, plants, bacteria or any other species.
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CRISPR IS MUCH ACCURATE THAN GM and it's just beginning to get started.
If the two were to meet in a darts match, CRISPR would definitely win. CRISPR is more precise than GM in a few aspects. CRISPR works only with pre-existing genetic material, not like GM. CRISPR "rewrites" what is already present within your deoxyribonucleic acid by separating those particular genes. The technology is based on four bases that make up the genes A, T and C, and then selects the relevant genes.
IT'S STARTING TO GET THE SAME REGULATIONS AS GM
Up until very recently there was minimal regulation for CRISPR as compared to GM. This is due to CRISPR's age, which dates back to 2013.6 However, EU courts ruled that CRISPR was subject to the same regulations as GM7. This is not applicable to other countries like China or the US, so global regulation of research is unclear.
CRISPR IS A CHEAP CHIPS
When you think of the latest food technology, you might think that it might come with the cost of production rising However, CRISPR is cheaper and more affordable than the other bioengineering methods currently in use. CRISPR doesn't require an enormous expensive laboratory or a lot of equipment. All it needs is the correct DNA fragment, the proper chemicals and enzymes.8
CRISPR IS NOT THE SAVIOR of FOOD RIGHT NOW.
While it's a top contender in the race to solve global food security issues, improving yields and resistance to environmental stresses to satisfy the global demand, CRISPR has a long way take. That race is an endurance race and not a sprint and CRISPR is still on the start line.
While it's a much more precise and simpler method than its predecessor (GM), that does not mean it's 100% foolproof. CRISPR can also act in unfavorable parts of the genome just as GM. Even though CRISPR is more precise does not mean that it is always as however, as studies have shown it's not always able to produce correct deletions.10 It's not yet in control of the genes that are in our food and being able to predict their behaviour fully, but we're getting there. CRISPR may be closer than we imagined.
